The Chosen One's Sister
by Emotional Dalek
Summary: This is the story of Ismira Skywalker, Anakin's younger sister, and the role she plays in the events seen in the movies. How much will her presence change, and how will having two Skywalkers affect the Jedi? T for safety mostly. AU.
1. Prologue

What if Anakin wasn't Shmi's only child? What if the force granted her a second child? Ismira Skywalker is Anakin's baby sister. Like her brother, Izzy is strong with the force. Watto is more than happy to get rid of her, and so, she too is sent to be trained as a Jedi. How much will change as a result of her presence though? Very AU, cannon pairings. If I decide to keep it going that far, I'll be ignoring the Extended Universe stuff, because I've only seen the movies and the first three series of The Clone Wars.

-PROLOGUE-

Anakin and Ismira Skywalker were their mother's pride and joy. As a slave, she was not allowed much in the way of possessions, and she considered herself lucky to have a master who could give her and her family food and shelter (even if he did moan about how Ismira was a drain on resources at three years old). She, like every other parent in the galaxy, though, wanted better for her children. Little did she know her dreams would soon come true.

Anakin brought home Qui Gon, Padme, Jar Jar, and R2-D2 home like stray animals. Her son would never leave someone stranded in the middle of a sandstorm. From what Shmi could make of it, they were stuck on Tatooine until they could somehow gather together enough money to replace their ship's hyperdrive. They had Republic credits, and Watto had a hyperdrive for their ship, but the Toydarian insisted that Republic credits were no good Tatooine. Anakin was quick to offer his help. He insisted that his podracer could win the next race, and said they could bet on him to win, and use the money to buy the hyperdrive. Shmi was, needless to say, none too keen on the idea. Deaths were common in such the pod races, and she didn't want her son to be the next casualty. But how could she disuade Ani, or Watto?

Shmi tried to stop Izzy, but the Jedi, Qui Gon, had already seen her levitate the battered and nearly bald wookiee teddy towards herself. "How long has she been able to do that?" he asked.  
"She started making things quiver just before she started walking, when she was a bit over a year old," answered Shmi. "She's been getting better ever since."

"Obi Wan," said Qui Gon into his comm. "I need you to check the two blood samples I just sent you for midichlorian counts."  
"Can I ask whose they are?"  
"Anakin and Ismira Skywalker. The samples should be labelled accordingly."  
There were several moments of silence as Obi Wan ran the samples through the computers in the ship's med bay. "According to the ship's computers these blood samples both contain incredibly high midichlorian counts; Anakin's is even higher than Master Yoda's."  
Qui Gon hummed in response.

"What if we made a deal?" said Qui Gon to Watto. "If the boy wins, he and his family come with me. Otherwise, you can have my ship, and me." He knew he was gambling very high stakes here, but the force was telling him that it was the right thing to do.  
"That is too much," Jedi," said the sleazy toydarian, "I cannot afford to lose both Ani and his mother. If this dice," he held up a dice with three blue sides and three red, "lands on red, you take the boy with you. If it lands on blue, his mother." "And Ismira?"  
"You can take the girl either way. She only costs me money."  
"Agreed."  
Watto rolled the dice. Qui Gon could see that it was going to land on blue, and used the force to make it land on red. Watto looked mad. Clearly, Anakin was the more economically beneficial of the Skywalkers. "You may have won this one, Jedi, but everyone knows that Sebulba is going to win the race!" Watto hovered away, frustrated.

Shmi stood, watching the race with the others. It was difficult to hide her worry. Ismira was on her hip, waving her arms and chanting "Ani! Ani! Ani!" over and over. It was quite endearing.

The race wasn't very long, really, but to Shmi, it seemed to go on forever, until at last they declared her Anakin the winner. She couldn't believe it; her son was the first human ever to win a pod race! He had won his freedom, and his sisters.  
Shmi, Qui Gon, Padme, Jar Jar, Ismira and the droids waited at the sidelines for the nine-year-old victor. Ismira ran over to him in a clumsy, toddler-ish fashion and hugged her big brother. Even at the tender age of three she recognised the significance of what had happened. And then Shmi told him what was going to happen.

Anakin had a hard time keeping up with Master Qui Gon's longer strides. Qui Gon carried a tired out Ismira. He was slightly curious to see what Obi Wan's reaction to the new passengers would be.  
"Keep up, Anakin," said Qui Gon, wanting to get off the dust bowl of a planet as quickly as possible. "Sorry Mister," the boy replied.  
They were just coming up to the ship; it's ramp down, ready and waiting for the three late comers. Obi Wan was standing, waiting for them, eager to make a disparaging comment about how long it had taken them to get there, when he saw a figure approaching on a speeder. "Master, look out!" he shouted. Qui Gon quickly and gently placed Ismira on the ground, and urged Anakin to run to the ship with her and tell them to get ready to take off.  
Anakin did as he was told. All Qui Gon wanted was a look at this figure that was surrounded by the dark side of the force.  
The man had black and red skin, with horns sticking out of his skull and yellow, bloodshot eyes, all of which gave him a demonic look. He lunged for Qui Gon, taking out a red lightsaber.  
Qui Gon only engaged him briefly before jumping onto the ships closing ramp. Obi Wan, Anakin, and Ismira were all waiting for him inside.  
"What was that thing?!" asked Anakin, amazement clear in his voice. "I don't know. I believe introductions are in order. Anakin, Ismira, this is Obi Wan, my padawan. Obi Wan, this is Ismira and Anakin Skywalker."  
Anakin held out a hand to shake and said "pleased to meet you," while Ismira, who was more shy of strangers, simply said hello.

XoxoX

So what did everyone think of the first chapter? I know it's not brilliant, but I promise it will get better. The next chapter is going to cover the rest of TPM, and start into just before AOTC. Reviews are love!

I'm afraid updates wont be as often as I would like, but I'll try my best. Also, I'm writing this on my kindle fire using a writer app, so I apologise for any typos. Also, I haven't watched The Phantom Menace in ages, so I apologise for any mistakes.

Emotional Dalek, AKA: Nessa, xoxox


	2. Chapter 1: Together Again

The first proper chapter. Enjoy! Also, I realised that I never put a disclaimer on the last chapter, so I'll say it now: I don't own Star Wars, Disney does. I guess you could argue that Ismira and Tansie are mine though.

XoxoX

After arriving at the temple, Izzy was sent to the crèche. The room was a chaotic mess of younglings - some playing, some arguing, some sobbing - with a frazzled looking knight and and an exhausted looking padawan trying to maintain control. The knight was the first to approach Ismira. "Hello," he said kindly, "I'm knight Moore. I'm the crèche master. What's your name?"

"I'm Ismira Skywalker, but everyone calls me Izzy."

"Nice to meet you Izzy. How about we we find you someone to play with." Ismira nodded. She missed her mother. It didn't take long to find the girl a playmate. Knight Moore left her with a twi'lek who was a little older than her. They seemed to get along just fine.

Meanwhile, Anakin was in the middle of a meeting with the council. They didn't seem to agree with Qui Gon that the boy should be trained. They were, however, happy to train his sister, as she was of the correct age.

Qui Gon was annoyed to say the least. How could they not see that Anakin was the chosen one? Saying that he was too old was a poor and flimsy excuse; Jedi had been trained successfully at greater ages than nine in the past. They were frightened of the boy and his potential; it was the only possible explanation. He was certain, as well, that they believed he was lying about Obi Wan being ready for the trials simply so that he could train Anakin. In truth, Qui Gon had been intending to put his padawan forward for the trials for quite some time now; the boy - no, man now - was more than ready. The feelings of a master sending their padawan to the trials were something akin to how a parent feels sending their child out into the world for the first time. Qui Gon knew that Obi Wan was ready, but he worried anyway. He was something like a parent to him, and he was reluctant to admit how much the boy he had been training all these years had grown up. Perhaps Obi Wan would take on Ismira as his own padawan in a few years? Who knew?

Qui Gon Jinn did not return from Naboo. He was slain by Darth Maul, who was, in turn, slain by Obi Wan Kenobi. Master Jinn's parting words to his padawan were requesting that he train Anakin. The council saw the sith lord's defeat as a suitable substitute for the trials, and Obi Wan was knighted upon his return to Coruscant. Much to the council's chagrin, he immediately announced that he would take Anakin Skywalker as his apprentice. Anakin was overjoyed by the news that he would be trained after all; he'd been worried that he'd have to go back to being a slave otherwise (although Padme had assured him that if the Jedi refused to train him, he could return to Naboo with her).

Ismira, meanwhile, would have to spend the next five or six years in the crèche before a knight or master would choose her as his or her padawan. Until then, she was happy to spend her time in classes with some of the older masters, and playing with her friends.

**10 years later. .** .

"Ismira, don't fidget so; you're making me restless child." Ismira blushed and quickly ceased tapping her feet on the floor of the ship.

"Sorry Master," said the thirteen year old, tucking a strand of dark blonde hair behind her ear.

"That's quite all right," said Master Tansie Fay. "Would you care to tell me why you are so excited?"

"I'm just excited to see my brother again master. I haven't seen him since I was an initiate. Circumstances have made it so that we haven't both been at the temple for quite some time."

Tansie couldn't help but smile. She knew she shouldn't encourage such attachment, but she didn't see how she could possibly stop it. So far as she knew, Anakin Skywalker was quite protective of his younger sister, and to Ismira, the young man could do no wrong.  
"Circumstance can be a cruel thing." Ismira nodded. "I myself am looking forward to being properly introduced to your brother." Ismira grinned.

"I'll introduce you if you would like?"

"That would be lovely, child." The twi'lek Jedi smiled as the small ship approached Coruscant.

Anakin Skywalker and Obi Wan Kenobi were waiting for Master Fay's ship to come in. Anakin hadn't seen his baby sister in years, and was eager to see how she was progressing now that she was a padawan. He was glad that Obi Wan was friends with Master Fay; otherwise he wasn't sure he'd have been allowed to greet them upon landing.

Anakin found it hard to hide his surprise when he saw his sister; Ismira was a good two feet taller than she had been last time he had seen her. Mind you, she had been eight then, and she was now thirteen. It felt weird seeing his baby sister all grown up, standing by her master's side, a lightsaber clipped to her belt and a padawan's braid by her ear. How had she grown up so fast? How had he managed to miss so much? Ismira Skywalker was less of a girl now, and was slowly and yet rapidly becoming a woman. Anakin wasn't sure he liked it.

Ismira grinned, and was about to run up to Anakin, but a sideways glance from Master Fay and remembering where she was stopped her, and she instead walked at steady pace next to her master.

"Master Kenobi, Padawan Skywalker," said Master Fay, "how good it is to see you."

"The feeling is mutual, Master Fay," said Obi Wan. "I trust your journey was pleasant?"

"Very. Much as I enjoy spending time in the more peaceful peripheral temples, I do like to return to Coruscant every now and then. Apart from anything else, you wouldn't believe how much gossip you miss out on spending months, or years, away from the gossip." Obi Wan smiled. Tansie had always been very different from other Jedi.

While their masters chatted about the array of differences differences between the main temple and the peripheral temples, Anakin and Ismira talked about all that had happened since they had last seen each other. Both of them were taller, for one thing. "How did you get to be so tall?" asked Ismira, making a slight show of arching her neck so that she could see Anakin's face.

"I could ask you the same question!" he replied. "I haven't seen you in so long."

"I know. How is your training going? You mustn't have that long left now."

"It's going fine. How are you finding life as a padawan? It must be more exciting than being an initiate."

"Oh, it is! Master Fay and I have been at the temple on Alderaan for the past nine months. The scenery there is so beautiful! It seems so odd to be on a planet so built up as Coruscant after that."

"I'm sure it must. I've only been to Alderaan once, and it was only for a few days, even then, but I did like it." They were silent for a few moments before Anakin looked up to see were Obi Wan and Master Fay nearby before speaking again.

"Do you ever have dreams about mom?" He seemed so hesitant about asking Ismira that she felt some concern.

"No, why?"

"No reason."

"Anakin, Ismira," called Obi Wan, "we'll be having dinner in the cafeteria. Meet us there in an hour"

"Yes, Master Kenobi," the siblings said simultaneously. In the meantime, they had some catching up to do.

"Why did you ask do I have dreams about mom?" asked Ismira. She and Anakin were currently sitting on a bench in one of the temple's many well kept indoor gardens. It was a particularly nice one, filled with plants from Naboo, with a pond full of water water lillies in the centre.

"No reason." Ismira could tell that her brother was lying to her, but decided not to push it; she knew that this was a sensitive topic.

"Is it bad that I barely remember her?" Anakin looked up to see unshed tears in Ismira's eyes.

"Izzy, you were only three when we left. No one can remember stuff from when they were that young."

"I know, but I feel bad for not being able to remember much. I can remember the sound of her voice, and things like hugs, but I can't picture her face."

"I'm afraid neither of us really look like her; we both have fair hair and blue eyes. Mom had dark hair and brown eyes."

"Why do you talk about her in the past tense? She's probably still alive."

"I don't know. I guess it's just that it's been so long since we last saw her, so it feels as though she may as well be."

"If our masters were to hear us talking about Mom like this, we'd be in so much trouble. I don't know about you, but I'd have to meditate for at least four hours straight and think about why attachments are bad!" Anakin grinned at the change in the tone of the conversation, glad they had left the topic of their mother. He didn't want to burden Ismira with his dreams.

"That's nothing, Master Kenobi would probably make _me_ meditate for a full night!" And so they went on like that, comparing their masters to see who was more of a disciplinarian (in the end they decided that Obi Wan was), until they had to go for dinner.

XoxoX

So how was that? Reviews are lovely, of course. If there was anything you didn't like, I'd be really grateful if you could point it out to me, so I can work on improving it.

Emotional Dalek, AKA: Nessa, xoxox


	3. Protecting a Senator

Huge thanks for all the follows and favorites! It's nice to know that someone's reading this. As always, I don't own any of this; it is purely the result of me watching too much Star Wars.

XoxoX

It was turning out to be a week of reunions for Anakin. Not only had he got to see his sister for the first time in years, but now he was getting to see Padme again too. Granted, it wasn't under the best of circumstances - Anakin and Obi Wan were to protect the senator from assassination attempts - but it was always good to see a friend.

Ismira and Master Fay, meanwhile, were at the temple, relaxing a bit before the council decided to send them on another assignment. Ismira had been taking the opportunity to improve her swordsmanship, and to see how she was doing compared to her peers (and getting the occasional tip from Anakin). She would be disappointed to see her brother have to leave so soon. One evening with him making sure no one tried to kill Padme Amidala seemed okay to her, though.

"Why not send Anakin to protect Senator Amidala, and I'll go to Kamino?" asked Obi Wan. The council murmured amongst themselves, considering the knight's idea.

"Not sure are we that a good idea that is," said Yoda in his characteristic backwards syntax. "Prone to forming attachments he is."

"Master Yoda, if I may interject," said Tansie Fay, "why not send my padawan, Ismira Skywalker, with them. She'd be able to, well, supervise them."

"Hmm, a good idea perhaps this is."

Ismira was delighted. This was the first time she'd been allowed on a mission without her master. She was hardly alone in this; she was accompanying Anakin on his mission to protect the senator from Naboo, and they had R2 with them.

At present, they were eating lunch while Anakin and Ismira regaled Padme with stories of their adventures with their respective masters. Anakin seemed to have much more exciting adventures than Ismira, but everyone knew that padawans didn't have many 'adventures' until they were about fifteen or sixteen, usually. Even Anakin would admit that he didn't do much more than diplomatic missions and visiting temples for quite a while; Obi Wan had gone on the more dangerous ones on his own, generally.

After they had eaten their lunch the trio (and R2) caught a ship to Theebs on Naboo. Padme was eager to take the opportunity to pay her family a quick visit. The Naberrie family were kind people, and insisted that they all stay for lunch, even after they were warned about Anakin's large appetite.

After lunch, Padme, Anakin, Ismira and R2 travelled to the lake house. The house was big, and the surroundings idyllic and tranquil. Ismira and Anakin were both hugely impressed by it; there were no buildings with any degree of beauty on Tatooine, and as Jedi, they didn't get to see many really beautiful architecture - Jedi were spartan as a rule. It was difficult not to envy Padme's childhood in a place like this.

Anakin and Ismira were to share the room next to Padme's, while R2 was to stay with Padme and wake her protectors in case of any emergencies. Both of them were confident that no one would find the senator out here - only the council and their masters knew where they had gone.  
***

Ismira had to say, she was a little annoyed. As soon as everyone had settled in, Padme and Anakin had taken off to play in the fields at the edge of the lake and left Ismira and R2 to themselves in the house. She knew that technically, Anakin was in charge, but this was her mission too. Why should she be left to twiddle her thumbs while they had fun?

While her brother was off galivanting, Ismira paced the perimeter of the house, checked that everything was secure, and then when she was confident that all was in order, she sat down on the porch and read for a while. The sun was setting when Anakin and Padme returned, and Ismira had finished her book and was preparing their dinner.

She wanted to be annoyed at them, even though Master Fay would scold her for it, but when she saw the pair laughing, she found that she couldn't. They were two friends having fun. Why would Anakin want his kid sister hanging around anyway?

The dinner Ismira had prepared was simple enough - a vegetarian affair made up of vegetables sauteed and smothered in a herby sauce.

"This is delicious Izzy," said Padme, smiling.

"Thank you," said Ismira. "So what did you two get up to this afternoon?"

"Not much," said Anakin, "we went for a walk around the the fields around the house. Caught up a bit."

Ismira simply said 'oh,' and left it at that. Okay, so maybe she was a little annoyed at them.

XoxoX

Okay, this chapter was a little shorter than the last. I'd love a review. Seriously, I want to know what people think of this. Authors love feedback! I hope to have the next chapter up soon.  
Emotional Dalek, AKA: Nessa, xoxox


	4. Tatooine

Huge thanks for the reviews! It's lovely to know that people are enjoying this. From here on in, things are going to get more exciting for Ismira.

XoxoX

Ismira decided to go to bed early; she almost always did, as she enjoyed waking with the sun. Anakin and Padme, however, decided to stay up and talk. Ismira fell asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.

Ismira woke to hear Anakin crying out for their mother. She got out of bed and ran over to him, shaking him.

"Ani?" she said, worried, "Ani, wake up!" Anakin inhaled sharply and snapped his eyes open, grabbing his sister by the arms.

"Izzy!" he shouted, "what time is it?"

"It's about four. What was the dream about?" Anakin sighed and looked up at Ismira. He was a mess. He was trembling, and he was in a cold sweat. "How about I get you some tea, and then you can tell me about it?" Anakin nodded, and Ismira ran off to the kitchen, pulling a dressing gown over her ankle-length nightdress as she went.

The kitchen wasn't far from the room, and it didn't take long to make the tea. She placed the tea pot, two mugs, a little bantha milk, and a strainer onto a tray, and quickly carried it back to the room, using the force to stop anything from spilling.

"So," said Ismira as she poured the tea, "what happened in your dream?"

"I-I saw mom, in pain, dying. I've had this dream before - I haven't been able to sleep properly for about a month."

"Oh, Ani." Ismira pulled him into a hug, rubbing comforting circles on his back. "Does Master Kenobi know?"

"Yes. I told him after having the dream for about a week."

"I think, for the moment, you should take a few deep breaths, finish your tea, and then go back to sleep." Anakin nodded but secretly, he was already making plans to go to to Tatooine and rescue his mother.

"That must have been some dream you had last night," said Padme as she approached her Jedi protectors.

"You heard that?" Said Anakin, not opening his eyes from his meditation, although Ismira could sense his embarrassment through the force.

"You were quite loud."

"I'm sorry. The dream was about my mother, a vision of her death. I have to rescue her."

Ismira couldn't help but feel a little bit excited as she and Anakin set down the ship in Mos Espa. This was her homeworld - the planet on which she was born. Hazy memories of her time there began to come back to her.

First port of call was to find Watto. He was Shmi's last known owner, making him a good starting point. The shop was a long walk, so the trio opted to take a taxi. It wasn't hard to find Watto.

The toydarian was sitting behind a desk outside his shop, fixing a ship part of some sort with little success. Anakin offered to help, and had the piece fixed in mere seconds.

"Ani?" asked Watto. "Little Ani?"

"I'm looking for Shmi Skywalker."

"It is you! And Izzy too! Both Jedi! Hey, maybe you could help me with some deadbeats who owe me money."

"My mother."

"Oh, uh, Shmi, uh, I don't own her anymore. I sold her to some farmer, years ago. Man called, uh, Lars, I think, years ago. But hey, I heard he freed her, married her even, so not so bad, eh?"

"Could you tell me where they live?"

"Sure. They live out by the Jundland Wastes, over the other side of Mos Eisley."

The journey out to the Lars family home took quite a while. It was, after all, quite a while away. Anakin was tense the whole way. The Lars' house was cleverly carved into the rock so that anyone looking at the spot would see only a small hut, nothing more. It was a way of avoiding the notice of the sand people; essential outside of the towns and ports.

Anakin, Ismira, and Padme were greeted by C3-PO, who was amazed to see his Maker. "Master Ani!" he shouted,"what brings you out here?"

"I'm looking for my mother."

"Oh. Perhaps you had best come inside."

Once they arrived in the 'garden' area of the house (well, someone had put a few desert plants around it) they saw a young man and woman, about the same age as Anakin. "May I introduce Anakin Skywalker, Master Owen," said 3-PO.

"Owen Lars," the young man held out his hand, which Anakin shook. "I guess I'm your step brother. This is my girlfriend, Beru."

"This is my sister, your step sister, Ismira," said Anakin. Ismira held out her hand and shook Owen's.

"I'm Padme," interjected the senator.

"I'm looking for my mother. I was told she was here?" Owen and Beru looked at each other nervously.

"Your mother's not here." Anakin, Ismira and Padme turned to see a man with one leg sitting in a hoverchair. "Cliegg Lars. Shmi's my wife."

Cliegg told them about how Shmi had been taken by the sand people while collecting mushrooms from the evaporators, and how of the thirty people that went looking for her, only four had returned. Anakin got up to leave. "Ani, where are you going?" asked Ismira, worried.

"I'm going to find my mother."

"Your mother's dead, son," said Cliegg. He tried to take his step son's hand, but Anakin walked off.

The suns were setting when Ismira came into the room she and Padme were to share, finding Padme sitting on one of the beds, looking upset.

"What's wrong?" asked the the young padawan.

"Ani's gone." That was all it took to send Ismira running up and out above the house, borrowing a speeder as she went. She had to help Anakin, and stop him doing something stupid.

Anakin wasn't hard to find, for Ismira at least. His force signature was so easy to find. She pulled up when she saw his speeder leaning against an evaporator and walked from there. After a while, she found herself looking at her brother, about to cut a hole into the wall of a hut. She rushed over as fast as was possible without being heard. He wasn't all that surprised to see her. In fact, he didn't even react to her arrival.

Inside the tent, they saw their mother tied to a pole, forced to kneel, with cuts and bruises everywhere. "Mom?" asked Anakin.

"Ani?" her voice was raspy. "Izzy? Oh my dears!"

"We're going to get you out of here, Mom," said Ismira as she cut the ropes, freeing her mother.

"I'm so proud of you two. So proud..."

"Mom, you can't die."

"So proud." Shmi let out a raspy breath.

"Mom!" exclaimed Anakin, but it was too late; she was dead. Anakin got up a look of fury in his eyes. Ismira grabbed his wrist.

"Where are you going?" she asked him, worried now. "I'm going to get my revenge on those, those... _animals_!"

"No, Ani! We're Jedi! We don't seek revenge! It's a path to the dark side."

Thankfully, Anakin saw sense in his sister's words. He calmed. They carefully carried their mother back to the speeders, taking a sheet from the hut with them. Once they were back at the speeders, they hastily wrapped their mother in the sheet. Anakin put her on his speeder and they returned to the house. Both of them were crying.

XoxoX

So what did everyone think? I love to hear feedback, so leave me a review. I hope you all liked it! Emotional Dalek, AKA: Nessa, xoxox


	5. Rescuing Obi Wan

Thank you for the lovely reviews! Here's the next chapter; enjoy!

XoxoX

Shmi's funeral was short - they buried her, and then Cliegg and Anakin both said a few words. Cliegg talked about how Shmi was the best wife a man could have asked for, while Anakin apologised for not getting there in time to save her. Ismira squeezed his hand comfortingly as he spoke.

After the funeral, everyone except Anakin went inside for a meal to celebrate the life of Shmi Skywalker Lars. Anakin stayed back, standing by his mother's grave. Ismira and Padme both would have stayed with him, but they figured he needed some time to himself.  
By that evening, Anakin still hadn't rejoined everyone else. Padme, worried that he would be hungry, took a tray of food up to him. In a way, she was glad he'd moved away from the grave and into the workshop, where he was busy making repairs to the various machines.

"Life seems so much simpler when your fixing things," he said forlornly, although Padme wasn't sure if he was talking to her or himself. "I was so angry, when she died."

"It's normal to be angry, Ani," she said soothingly, "it's part of what makes us human."

"You don't understand. I would have killed them for what they did. Not just the men, either, but the women and the children too! I'm a Jedi, I'm supposed to be better than this!"

"What stopped you?"

"Izzy. She grabbed me and made me see sense. If she hadn't been there, I don't honestly know what would have become of me."

Ismira was meditating. She wouldn't normally enjoy meditation, but it had been a rather trying day, and she felt that she needed the comfort of connecting with the force. She was disturbed out off her peaceful state by a familiar beeping noise.

"What are you doing here R2?" she asked the little astromech droid, slightly annoyed. C3-PO, who was nearby, translated for her.

"He says that he is carrying an urgent message from an Obi Wan Kenobi, and that you all need to return to the ship immediately immediately to send it to the council. Does that mean anything to you, Mistress Ismira?"

"Yes. Yes it does."

It took them about an hour to get back to the ship, which they had moved to Mos Eisley to shorten their journey to the Lars' house. The family had told them to take 3-PO with them, as they had little use for a protocal droid, and, as his maker, Anakin had more of a claim to him than they did. Upon their arrival at the ship, they went straight to the cockpit and R2 played his message for them.

A hazy image of Obi Wan appeared and told them to redirect the message to Coruscant before continuing, and explaining that he was on Geonosis, and that he now knew that Count Dooku and the Separatists were, indeed, behind the assassination attempts on Padme, and that he had just seen several important organisations, including the Trade Federation and the Banking Clan, swear allegiance to the Separatist cause. He probably would have said more, but at that moment several Geonosians appeared and started to shoot at Obi Wan. The signal was cit at that point, and the image was replaced by that of Masters Yoda and Windu, who told the young Jedi to continue to protect the senator. "We have to help him!" said Padme, concerned for her friend.

"I would, but you heard the council," said Anakin, "we have to stay here!"

"They told you to protect me, and I'm going to save Obi Wan, so I guess you had best come with me."

"As you wish, my lady." Both Anakin and Ismira grinned.

Anakin set down the ship in an exhaust vent, allowing them to avoid detection. Ismira could barely sit still with excitement - this would be her first time venturing into a hostile environment, and perhaps getting to try out her skills with her lightsaber. She knew that Master Fay would be be cross at her excitement over the prospect of violence, but the padawan didn't really care; her master was not there, and she was eager to do her proud and prove how well she had been taught.

When they got off the ship, they ventured into a tunnel of some kind. The first few yards brought no trouble, but when they were two thirds of the way to the door at the other end, they began to slow down. Not only could Anakin and Ismira sense the force practically screaming in their ears that they were in danger, but they could hear the rustling of the geonosians who had been sleeping on the walls. Anakin and Ismira ignited their lightsabers - both blue - and fought off the insect-like creatures. Their was a brief moment of relief when they reached the end of the tunnel and the door shut behind them, but then the bridge began to disappear beneath them, and Padme slipped. Anakin jumped after her, onto the assembly line of the battle-droid factory they had found themselves on. Ismira, on the other hand, jumped carefully to the ground, and focused on the task at hand; rescuing Master Kenobi.

Ismira knew from her studies that the inhabitants of Geonosis dwelled in tunnels, and that all tunnels on the planet were connected. On the plus side, this meant that all she had to do to find Master Kenobi was pick the right tunnel; on the down side, this meant that she was trying to find a needle in a haystack. Whoever had made these tunnels originally had clearly never heard of a straight line, or of signposts. Fortunately for Ismira, she noticed a large concentration of guards in one tunnel, and figured that was the prison area.

Ismira used the force to send a pebble scattering down the hallway. One guard went to investigate, leaving only one guarding the tunnel. Ismira had been practicing the Jedi mind trick for a while; she only hoped it would work.

"You will let me pass," she said as she walked up to the guard, drawing her fingers across, hoping it would work.

"I will let you pass." The guard stepped out of the way, and Ismira walked into the prison tunnel. The tunnel was wide, and every few feet, there was a door. Ismira used the force to guide her to Obi Wan's cell. It was at the very end. She pressed the button to unlock the door. Inside, there was Obi Wan Kenobi, his back to her, bound in cuffs specially designed for holding Jedi.

"Master Kenobi," said Ismira quietly, "are you all right?"

"Ismira?" he was surprised to see her, to say the least. "What are you doing here?"

"Rescuing you, of course!"

"Is Anakin here?"

"He's. . . a little busy right now."

"By busy, you mean in grave danger, don't you?"

"Yeah, that sounds about right." Ismira turned off the binders. "Well, I suppose we'd best go help them."

Obi Wan and Ismira ran out of the cell, only to be met by guards, led by Count Dooku "Ah, Master Kenobi, and a young padawan. I presume you were part part of this ill-fated rescue mission. So nice of you both to join us."


	6. The Arena

We're getting to the end of AOTC now. Just to point out, I won't be following The Clone Wars entirely; characters specific to The Clone Wars, like Ahsoka, will be in it, and some episodes will be in it. Just thought I'd say that before people started giving out to me saying such and such didn't happen, or that's wrong.

XoxoX

The rescue team were quickly sent to individual cells. Ismira had a sinking feeling that they were awaiting something unpleasant. Ismira's cell was smaller than Obi Wan's had been. In fact, she thought her cell might actually be a broom cupboard, and that they'd run out of real cells. She decided that of they all got out of this alive, she'd ask Anakin and Padme about the size of their cells.

She'd been there approximately a night when two guards pulled her out, and dragged her to a sort of chariot. She was there about a minute when they brought Obi Wan out.

"What do you think they're going to do to us?" she asked, her voice sombre.

"Execute us," he answered, his own voice surprisingly calm and collected. "So far as I know, the traditional method of execution on Geonosis is to allow the prisoners to be killed by creatures."

"Sounds cheerful."

The door opened and they could hear the crowd baying for blood. The chariot started to move towards four large, stone pillars at the other end of the arena. Ismira was chained to the one on the far-right, with Obi Wan on the one next to her. It was only about a minute before they brought out Anakin and Padme. "I thought you were supposed to stay on Tatooine," said Obi Wan, annoyed now.

"Oh, you know me, Master," the padawan replied. "Besides, it was Padme's idea to come and rescue you."

"Good job."

All conversation ceased at that point, when the leader of the geonosians told the crowd to settle down. Ismira could just about make out Count Dooku, and a member of the Trade Federation up there with him. The others, she didn't recognise. They couldn't be sure what the geonosian said, but it must have been something along the lines of 'let the games begin,' because at that point, four doors opened at the other side of the arena, releasing four monstrous creatures from across the galaxy, and the crowd resumed baying for blood.

Ismira wasn't entirely sure what kind of creature it was charging towards her, but it was big, and looked a little bit like a wampa with its fur trimmed. Ismira noted with distaste that the creature still had blood in the fur around its mouth from the last person to have a run in with him. Ismira waited until he was almost on top of her, then darted to the side, letting him crash into the pillar. He snagged the chain on one of his horns, snapping it when he moved back. Ismira smiled. She now had a weapon. She swung her makeshift weapon at the wampa-like creature, and was pleased to see it retreat a little, and hesitate before coming at her again. But come at her again he did. This time, she used the force to push him back a few feet. The creature looked a little disorientated, and another of the creatures - a large spidery thing with a lot of teeth that had been at Obi Wan - took its chance and bit into the creature's neck, killing it instantly. The crowd roared. Clearly they only wanted the violence.

Ismira looked around. Padme had managed to disuade her large, rat like creature from attacking her, but had gained three large gashes on her back in the process. Anakin was trying to get onto his creature's back. Obi Wan had managed to stab the spidery creature, but it had taken the pointed stick in its mouth and snapped it in two.

Once Anakin had managed to get Padme on his creature's back behind him, it looked like they might win this thing. But then, the guards pulled out blasters.

So this was how it was going to end. Ismira had certainly thought she'd at least get to knighthood before she died. Looking at her brother, she could tell that he had thought the same thing.

It was at that moment, when it looked as though all was lost, that help arrived. All of a sudden, there was Master Windu, standing on the platform above the arena, his purple lightsaber at the throat of Jango Fett, the bounty hunter Obi Wan had been looking for. It looked like things might finally be going in there favour.

Count Dooku was speaking to Master Windu, but from her position in the centre of the arena, Ismira couldn't hear what he was saying. Then, suddenly, the whole place was crawling with Jedi. They were standing in the now vacated seats surrounding the arena. Ismira couldn't help but grin. Unfortunately, it was at that moment that Dooku had a droid army march on them. Without lightsabers or even blasters, Obi Wan, Anakin and Ismira were all feeling vulnerable, but less so than Padme. After all, even without a lightsaber, a Jedi should still be considered armed. Padme, on the other hand, was quite vulnerable until she could get a blaster. And then the fight began. Ismira was too busy dodging blaster bolts to see what the others were doing, but it wasn't long before she came across Master Fay.

"I think you might need this," she said as she threw her padawan a lightsaber.

"Thank you, Master!" said Ismira as she ignited the blade and properly joined the fight.

Many Jedi fell during the skirmish. They were outnumbered, and it wasn't long before Ismira found herself cornered in an overturned chariot with Anakin and Padme. She hadn't known the senator was a good shot. It wasn't looking very good for them.

The remaining Jedi couldn't have been more happy to see Master Yoda accompanied by the new army for the Republic. Ismira soon found herself being pulled onto a carrier ship by a soldier with slightly different armour to the others. She assumed he was more senior than the others. It wasn't long before the carrier was crowded with Jedi. Ismira somehow managed to get over to Tansie at the other end of the carrier. She hoped her master knew more about what was going on.

"Master," she said, "can you tell me what's going on?"

"The Republic now has an army, Ismira," she said simply. "A clone army. They are to be led by the Jedi." Ismira found it hard to conceal her surprise. Jedi weren't soldiers; they were peacekeepers and negotiators. They didn't often get into conflicts.

"So what are we doing now?"

"We are going to fight off the separatists, and try and go after Dooku."

Something hit the ship, and it lurched suddenly. Ismira, who hadn't had a very good grip on the handle above her, slipped and fell out of the carrier. She tumbled through the air, unable to correct herself to minimise the damage to herself in her blind panic. She put her hand out to save herself, and there was a sickening crunching, cracking sound when she hit the ground. Pain radiated from around her wrist and she cried out. The ship didn't stop, but Ismira heard Master Fay calling for her.

Ismira got up, holding her sore wrist against her chest. She could see a clone coming towards her. "Ma'am, are you all right?" he asked her. Ismira wondered for a moment was there someone else there that he was talking to. She was, after all, only thirteen; no one had ever called her ma'am before.

She shook her head. "I think my wrist in broken."

"I'll escort you to a carrier. There are some taking the wounded back up to the main ship."

"Thank you. Do you have a name?"

"Clones don't have names ma'am, but my identification code is CT-54"

"That's not a name, that's something you would call a droid! You should at least have nicknames; you are human beings, after all."

"I'm not sure how well that would go down with our commanding officers."

"I thought the Jedi were leading the clone army; I'm sure most of them would agree with me."

"Well what's your name anyway?"

"Ismira Skywalker. Pleasure to make your acquaintance." Ismira held out her good hand to shake. The clone had a good, firm handshake.

The carrier they reached had a lot of wounded clones and a few Jedi waiting to go up to the main ship. Ismira and the clone escorting her hopped on, and someone shouted: "I think we're full, lets go!"

The journey off the planet didn't take very long. Once they were on the main ship, they were helped off. "I hope you recover soon, Ma'am." said the clone.

"Thank you. I think I've come up with a nickname for you: Cody. Because you didn't have a name but you told me your code."

"I think I like that one. Commander Cody. Thank you Ma'am."

"You're welcome. Stay safe, Commander Cody." Ismira smiled at her new found friend and waved with her good hand as he hopped back on the carrier, which was going back down to the planet to collect more of the wounded.

Ismira and the rest of the wounded, some of whom had been put into hoverchairs, followed a protocal droid to the med bay. Some were far more gravely injured than others, so Ismira's wrist was not seen to for a while. Not that she minded. They had given her some strong painkillers, so she couldn't feel the pain anymore, and they had given her something to stop the swelling.

A quick x-ray and a little poking and prodding before wrapping the wrist in plaster and a coloured bandage and Ismira was pretty much sorted. She would have to wait until the pain killers wore off before she could leave.

She was just picking up a datapad to do a little reading, when she saw Obi Wan being led in, lightsaber wounds on his arms. Behind him, she saw Anakin, white as a sheet, with his arm cut off above the elbow.

XoxoX

So, what did everyone think? I'm afraid I wont be able to update as often from here on in, since I have to go back to school on Monday. I will try to update once or twice a week, but it depends on what work I have to do; I have major, future-deciding exams this June. I will try my best though, and after my exams, I'll have lots of free time for the first time in about eighteen months, so I'll probably write lots then.

Emotional Dalek, AKA: Nessa, xoxox


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